A look back at the winter of 2012-2013

The trend of the past 10 years continued with less cold during winter and snowfall slightly above the averages we have seen since 1872.
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Dina Rudick/Globe Staff

December was noted for mild temperatures and lack of significant snow. In Boston the 3.4 inches of snow that fell during the final month of 2012, was more than 5 inches below normal. Additionally, temperatures averaged 38.4 degrees, which was 3.7 degrees above normal. The ground remained unfrozen much of the month allowing outdoor work to continue. A light snowfall on Christmas provided a “picture perfect sugar coating of white” to set the scene for Santa.

Pictured: Residents of Medford dug out their snow-covered cars the morning after a big snowstorm on Dec. 30, 2012. Next

John Blanding/Globe Staff

January started off very mild. There were strong signs of a pattern shift on the way for mid-January, and arctic air from Canada put a halt to the mild temperatures with nine days of cold weather during the middle of the month. Even with the cold snap and one of the longest periods of below freezing weather in 10 years, the month still ended up on the plus side in the temperature department. Three days of 60 degree weather during January, including the final two days, were just too much warmth for the cold to be able to average out. In the end, January goes into the record books at 2.5 degrees above normal.

Pictured: Under sunshine and a blue sky, snow melted on Brattle Street in Harvard Square on Jan. 7.Next

Mario Tama/Getty Images

February brought cold and snow more in keeping of an “old fashioned” New England winter. The 34 inches of snow that fell in February was a whopping 23.1 inches above the average and puts February 2013 as the fifth snowiest February on record.

Most of the snow fell during the big nor’easter on Feb. 9—14.8 inches of the 24.9 that fell in Boston. This set a new record for the date on top of the 10.1 inches of snow that had fallen the day before.

Pictured: Lauren Montana scraped the snow off of her car on Feb. 9 in Brighton.Next

Darren McCollester/Getty Images

A surprise March 8 storm dumped more snow on Massachusetts, shutting down schools and ravaging coastal homes. A large swath of Central and Eastern Massachusetts receiving 18 to 24 inches, including a small section of southwest Boston, while the rest of the city collected 14 to 18 inches.

Along the coast, where the power of the wind and waves was the story, a dozen houses were placed in jeopardy on vulnerable Plum Island in Newbury, including one house that was ripped from its foundations and teetered into the surf on March 8.

Pictured: Knocked off its foundation, 41 Annapolis Way got hit with the waves on March 8.Back to the beginning